Graduation, interview, etc...

I spent Thursday night at the eighth grade graduation. It wasn't my choice, the whole newspaper staff had to be there to cover it. Alison showed up in a deep blue velvet dress, it was cute on her. Alison in a dress was strange, but I had to get used to it. Megan's dress was black and gold, also very cute.

Before the graduation, though, I ran into Marisol Luna. Remember I told you she was an eighth grader? Well I found out that next term she's going to Parkington. So you know I piped her with all kinds of questions about the school.
She says Parkington is a magnet school for gifted and talented young ladies. Since she's a dancer, she's enrolling in its acclaimed dance academy. She told me something else too -- about something called a deferred enrollment, which is what she did. She attended Adams for a year before going to Parkington and said that if I was thinking about going that it would be an option to think about.
Another thing: Her younger sister, Maitte, will be at Adams next year.
The next day was our awards ceremony for this year. I hate these because the teachers take too long to give them out. They gave out awards for clubs and activities and perfect attendance. I haven't missed a day of school in three years, so when they announced "Haley Hotchkiss, three years perfect attendance," I heard Meredith and some of the others sitting on the top bleachers yelling boos.
Kristy got basketball team MVP, Alison got soccer team MVP, Megan received the special principal's award for "going beyond the call of duty." A boy named Caelan Staub got highest average awards for math and science, I got mine for social studies, Megan got it for English, Katarina got for reading, and Hilary got her awards for highest average in spelling, winning the school spelling bee, district spelling bee, 2nd in state spelling bee -- oh, and she's going to nationals in July.
I was a little nervous when Mrs. Baldwin went to announce the 6th grader with the highest grade point average. "Haley, you know you're gonna get that," Harriet said with a nudge.
"Caelan's smart too," I reminded her. I don't know Caelan that well, he's pretty quiet and keeps mostly to himself.
"The sixth grader with the highest grade point average for the year -- Haley Hotchkiss with a 3.975."
"Haley, don't act like you didn't know," Kristy said. Meredith and her friends rained down more boos as I walked to receive my awards.
Speaking of Parkington, my interview was okay... not great, not bad. Just okay. They asked me about what I was involved in and what I wanted to do with my life. When I got ready to leave, they shook my hand, and I left.